Federal Court to hear Najib’s bid for SRC retrial first on Aug 15, before hearing final appeal against conviction

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 10 — The Federal Court is expected to hear on August 15 former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s application to add purported new evidence and to ultimately seek a retrial of the SRC case, where he had been convicted and sentenced to 12 years’ jail and RM210 million fine.

Previously, the Federal Court had set August 15 as the start of the hearing for Najib’s final appeal against his guilty verdict in the SRC International Sdn Bhd case.

Following a case management today at the Federal Court, it is understood that the Federal Court will first hear on August 15 Najib’s application seeking for a retrial of the SRC case.

It is also understood that if Najib fails in his application for a retrial, the Federal Court will then proceed to hear his final appeal against his conviction in the SRC case.

The SRC appeal hearing has for now been scheduled to take place over nine days, from August 15 to August 19 and from August 23 to August 26.

Najib had recently changed his entire team of lawyers for the SRC case, and his new lawyers had indicated that they would ask the Federal Court for a postponement of the final SRC appeal hearing due to the change in the legal team.

But the Federal Court had previously replied on July 28 that there would be no postponements for the appeal hearing.

Local media reported today that Najib’s new lawyers had also indicated to the Federal Court that they were not ready to go on with the SRC appeal hearing and needed more time to prepare as it was no ordinary appeal, and that they were expected to ask the Federal Court again for a postponement of the SRC case.

Najib’s new lawyers also reportedly indicated that they would have no choice but to discharge themselves from acting for him in the SRC case if the Federal Court decides not to grant a postponement of the SRC appeal hearing.

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